Just When You Thought It Was Safe To Be Excited About The Demise Of "Glory's Last Shot"...

The Forecaddie this week says Tim Finchem also deserves credit for the demise of the PGA of America's silly "Glory's Last Shot" slogan. However, Finchem's reasoning had to do with the FedExCup glory looming after the PGA, not the sheer silliness.

Everyone on three...one, two, three: OY VEY!

Anyway while I was vacationing I see the PGA Of America confirmed they are getting rid of Glory's Last Shot and ushering in a fan contest to select a Sunday 15th hole location at Oak Hill.

Yes, it will be from one of four Kerry Haigh-determined hole locations but this still seems like something the other majors would never think of doing (even though Jack Nicklaus' endorsement helps soften the blow). Maybe I'd feel more excited if there were going to be fifteen PSA's and 435 commercial breaks during the perenially unwatchable PGA Championship telecast.

The Reuters story, and the PGA of America press release.

For Immediate Release:

A collaborative learning experience between The PGA of America and record-tying, five-time PGA Champion Jack Nicklaus, the "PGA Championship Pick the Hole Location Challenge" is designed to educate fans on how course setup impacts a golfer's strategy in playing a hole; attract more people to the game; and help explain what hole location information players are provided each day.

As a result, Haigh has identified and selected each of these four distinct Championship hole locations for fans to vote. On August 11, during Sunday's final round coverage on TNT and CBS, fans will be able to see the winning hole position that will be used on the 15th green.

You can vote here.

Phil's UK Tax Bill And The Implication For More Links Golf

CPA K. Sean Packard, CPA "specializes in tax planning and the preparation of tax returns for pro athletes" and has broken down Phil Mickelson's winnings in Scotland from the last two weeks: His conclusion, well, Phil netted very little in actual on course earnings after the Queen gets her take to pay for George's diapers and California pays four teachers.

Seriously, this is an important topic as it relates to getting top players to play the Scottish Open, BMW at Wentworth or an English Open if it could ever be made to happen.  Players simply avoid playing in the UK more than they need to because of the stifling tax rates on top of what they pay here at home. First world problems, indeed, but nonetheless important for everyone (myself included) to remember when we lament why more players don't play Royal Aberdeen next year, or why the PGA Tour does not play a WGC event in the UK or why we don't see more tournaments on the great links of the U.K.

For his two weeks of play, the world’s best golfer (rankings be damned) earned £1,445,000, or about $2,167,500.

The United Kingdom, which has authority to set Scotland’s tax rate until 2016, graduates to a 40% tax rate when income hits £32,010 then 45% when it reaches £150,000. Mickelson will pay £636,069 ($954,000, or 44.02%) on his Scottish earnings.

But that’s not all. The UK will tax a portion of his endorsement income for the two weeks he was in Scotland. It will also tax any bonuses he receives for winning these tournaments as well as a portion of the ranking bonuses he will receive at the end of the year, all at 45%. It is a significant amount for Mickelson, with only Roger Federer and Tiger Woods earning more among athletes from endorsements and appearances.

Packard goes on to lay out the tax bill in the U.S. (foreign tax credit!) and California

Without considering expenses, Mickelson will pay 61.12% taxes on his winnings, bringing his net take-home winnings to about $842,700. When expenses are considered (10% to caddy Jim “Bones” Mackay, airfare, hotel, meals, agent fees on endorsement income/bonuses—all tax deductible here and in the UK), his take-home will fall closer to 30%.

Of course Phil will benefit in the endorsement world and, oh yeah, he's the Champion Golfer of the Year having won The Open at Muirfield, over a star-studded leaderboard with a round that will talked about for ages. No tax bill can take away that.

Phil Didn't Get Out Of Bed For Days After Merion And Other Post Open Championship Victory Insights

GolfChannel.com has a nice roundup of quotes from Phil Mickelson making the media rounds, including his admission that he was so tired and beaten down from the U.S. Open loss that he didn't get out of bed much until a family trip and a dinosaur egg got him going again.

There's some great stuff too about the Open, changes in his diet and an epic Bones' story begging a college professor to help him graduate and what the win meant to him from his Dan Patrick interview, which you can listen to here:



Earlier this week Jim Mackay was on the Patrick show and also shared some super insights into The Open:

Finally, Phil hit the Today Show to talk about his Mickelson ExxonMobil teachers academy and to play table tennis.

Update on 2013-07-27 14:53 by Geoff

**Thanks to Average Golfer for spotting Phil's appearance on NPR, too.

And One More East Lothian Great: Gullane

Wrapping up the week of light posting and celebrating all things East Lothian golf, the final course to be highlighted is Gullane. By no means the only other course that is required viewing, but on this trip I had the opportunity to play with some colleagues and came away with a new appreciation for the No. 1 course here. (Nos. 2 and 3 are swell too, but No. 1 is the world class experience).

Architecturally, Gullane doesn't have the features that you find on North Berwick but instead the overall experience of starting in town, playing up the hill, then taking in the views up high before playing some splended holes closer to the sea, before a brutally difficult inward stretch that ends back in town. Somehow it all works, though Gullane is a difficult exam, especially with its robust roughs (great soil, no more rabbits munching on it).

One favorite element of Gullane is the sight of teeing off-golfers silouetted through the round. You never feel like you are teeing off on unnaturally perched tees, yet everytime you turn your head at Gullane you see a few golfers atop a tee, whapping away at their tee ball. ESPN.com's Bob Harig wrote about our round but out of kindness, left out the number of times I pointed this out.

If you go, there are other elements that will make your trip even better. As I noted in my Golf Digest story, The Golf Inn, Old Clubhouse and a visit with Archie Baird are all musts. There is also a splendid German bakery on the corner of the intersection with the signal. But finally, you also will just want to wander around the town and the Children's course to experience what it's like to be in a town that leaves and breathes golf. You'll see kids walking the streets with the clubs and overhear people talking about their games. It reminds you what a great community we are apart of.

Some photos from 2012 and 2013, including inside Mr. Baird's museum. Reminder: all of the East Lothian posts can be found by searching above, going to topics East Lothian, and also the Photos page to see the images. And Golf East Lothian's website is your best bet for trip planning help.

More East Lothian Golf: North Berwick West Links

The real star of Open Championship week: North Berwick West Links.  Everyone who played there raved about the experience and in a shocking twist of fate, the architecture. Long held by Americans and even some Scots as too fluky and strange, while generally punished in rankings by panelists because of its lack of, well I don’t know what, this masterpiece impressed with its cinematic setting and enjoyment.

“It’s so fun,” were the operative words heard over and over again.

But even more than the purest golfing pleasure imaginable, there seemed to be a newfound appreciation for the importance of studying the West Links as a model for design and as the ultimate community course.

“You can’t call yourself a student of architecture until you’ve played there,” said Geoff Ogilvy, who played North Berwick Tuesday afternoon after his morning practice round.

Other pros spotted there during the week included Stewart Cink (using a trolley!), Bubba Watson and Johnson Wagner. Other dignitaries like USGA Executive Director Mike Davis went for morning or evening strolls to take in the sacred grounds and all came away either reminded of its genius or newly infatuated. Even the often maligned Redan hole, whose offspring tend to be more fun to play, was savored thanks to the firm conditions which made the approach function beautifully.

The other frequent reaction: if golf had more places like North Berwick, with its character rich design and neighboring children’s course, the sport would be much healthier going forward.

As I noted in my East Lothian pilgrimage story for the July Golf Digest, this is a masterpiece that must be the centerpiece of any visit to this grand golfing mecca. Oh, and don't be shy about playing the "East Links," aka The Glen. It overlooks the town and while not featuring as many interesting ground features (what course does?), it's a great alternative, especially late in the day as the sun sets.

Some photos from 2012 and 2013:

 

Golf World On Tiger's Open: "Wrong And Gone"

I had the task of following Tiger and Adam Scott Sunday at the Open Championship and here is my Golf World take on Tiger's final day.

Far & Sure: Scenes From Leith Links, Bruntsfield And Edinburgh

There is something about wandering around land where they played golf a few hundred years ago that humbles you and maybe even alters your perspective on this wacky game.

My East Lothian pilgrimage story for the July Golf Digest explains the absolute necessity for those making a golf pilgrimage to visit the ghosts at Leith Links (still appreciated by the Leith Rules Society) and 67 Canongate (Kilderkin Pub) to see the home of John Patersone and the Far & Sure plaque. And then there's the Bruntsfield Links area where the oldest golf clubhouse operates as a public tavern (The Golf Tavern), remains a super place to grab a pint or bite, and the links is a wildly fun 36-hole pitch and putt today.

The history of Far And Sure, courtesy of Alex Miceli's little known Far & Sure blog:

In 1681, James, Duke of York, who would later become James II, played an integral role in the first international match. As legend has it, the Duke was an avid golfer and would often be seen on Leith Links in Edinburgh. Apparently, two English nobleman, while attending the Scottish Court, insisted that the game was of English descent, creating a dispute with the Duke. Defending the game as Scottish in origin, the Duke accepted the challenge to settle the matter on the links. A foursome was arranged, but not before the Duke conducted a through search for a suitable partner. The Duke relined on townspeople, who all agreed that the finest golfer was, ironically a common shoemaker named John Patersone.

With a grand sum of money at stake, the modest cobbler and the future king partnered to defend the honor of their national game. The two won the match handily and , for his efforts, Patersone was granted half of the sizable purse. With the earning, he immediately purchased a home at 77 Caonogate, where over the front door was placed the Patersone coat of arms along with the appropriate motto, "Far and Sure."

Last week I visited these places again while touring the extraordinary city of Edinburgh. I was educated about them by golf architect Scott Macpherson, who is lucky enough to live there. And while it's important to go back to the places the game was first played, I also think they offer something much deeper in the way of perspective about how long people have been struggling at this maddening game. Just picturing the ghosts of 200 years ago trying to figure out their backswing position or a better way of playing golf and knowing that we continue to carry to the torch today, can be an important and dare I say, spiritual experience.

Some images from 2012 and 2013 of the sights mentioned. 2012 would be the green grass year and '13 the browned out look and superior playing condition.

R&A Cancels Traditional Post-Open Presser; Cites Heat Wave For Attendance Drop At 2013 Open

Scott McDermott and Euan McLean slam R&A Chief Inspector Executive Peter Dawson for not holding his annual State of the Open press conference and speculate that despite a mostly outstanding week of golf and operational excellence, he was not interested in answering any more membership related questions.

However the R&A did offer a reason on the attendance drop at Muirfield compared to the last Open held, there, which was particularly noticeable Thursday and Friday.

The statement read: “More than 142,000 people attended The Open this week. That is almost 90 per cent of the figure in 2002 and we are pleased with this attendance.

“We believe the extremely warm weather put off some of our pay-at-the-gate customers.”

Extreme warm weathering meaning the temperature approached 80 for a few hours!

More likely the drop was related to high ticket prices and the elimination of a senior discount.

East Lothian Golf: Musselburgh Golf And Racing

To kick off Light Posting/Celebrating East Lothian Golf Week, I’d like to direct you to a story I wrote for the July 2013 Golf Digest on making your golf pilgrimage to Edinburgh and East Lothian. Nothing against St. Andrews, which is terrific, but if you love the history of the game, want to make the essential trip for a golfer and want to take a trip to Scotland without the long drives and travel stress, this is the place to set up shop.

Having spent another week here playing some golf, seen the courses in their perfect dry state, experienced more of the eateries, hung out in Edinburgh and settled into the towns of North Berwick and Gullane as a guest, I’m even more confident in my reporting from a year ago that this is a golfing mecca like no other.

To put it another way, I had that uniquely bittersweet emotion of driving through Gullane today, happily seeing life getting back to normal for the town but so desperately hoping I will get to come back and do it all over again.

As I outline in the story there are so many places to see and while I should start with the most historic locations in Edinburgh, in honor of today’s Tuesday racing card at Musselburgh Race Course, I’d like to direct you to videos I posted previous on the site from one of my favorite days in golf: morning play at the oldest played course in the world (with hickories), and afternoon of racing. Where the turf meets the turf.

And of course, should you decide to make this journey, GolfEastLothian.com is a super one-stop-shop for most questions, planning help and even tee times at some courses.

Enjoy and may all the horses come home safe!

An overview:

And the fourth hole:

ESPN’s '13 Open: Third Most Watched Golf Event On Cable

For Immediate Release...

ESPN’s Open Championship Sets Cable Viewership Records
 
With many of the sport’s biggest names in contention, ESPN’s live telecasts of the weekend rounds of play in The Open Championship on Saturday and Sunday, July 20-21, set cable viewership records for golf’s oldest major championship. ESPN’s digital platforms also saw double and triple-digit increases during the event.
 
According to Nielsen Fast National data, ESPN earned a record-tying 3.1 U.S. rating for the 8 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. ET live telecast of Sunday’s final round as fan favorite Phil Mickelson scored a come-from-behind win at Scotland’s Muirfield Golf Links. The telecast, which averaged 4,372,000 viewers, tied the ratings record set in last year’s final round for the highest-rated cable telecast of the event and set a cable viewership record for the event, eclipsing last year’s mark of 4,227,000.
 
The 9 a.m. – 2:47 p.m. Saturday telecast earned a 2.7 U.S. household rating, averaging 3,776,000 viewers, beating the 2.6 U.S. rating and 3,545,000 viewership average ESPN earned for third-round coverage in 2012. It ranks as cable’s highest-rated and most-viewed telecast of the third round.
 
Sunday’s telecast ranks third-highest among all golf telecasts on cable, only behind the 2008 U.S. Open playoff and the 2010 Masters first round (when Tiger Woods returned to golf). The Saturday telecast ranks ninth. ESPN golf telecasts hold nine of the top 10 positions, including all of the top five.
 
ESPN’s telecast of the opening round on Thursday also attracted more viewers than last year, with the 7 a.m. – 3:45 p.m. telecast averaging 1,398,000 viewers, up from an average of 1,343,000 last year, with both telecasts earning a 1.1 U.S. rating. Friday’s 7 a.m. – 3:39 p.m. coverage was down slightly from last year, earning a 1.3 rating with an average of 1,658,000 viewers, down from a 1.4 rating and 1,771,000 viewers last year.
 
Saturday’s encore presentation airing on ABC from 3-6 p.m. was up in metered market ratings, earning a 1.4, up from a 1.3 last year. Sunday’s presentation earned a 1.6 metered market rating, the same as last year.
 
The Open Championship (July 18-21) across ESPN digital platforms – including ESPN.com, Fantasy, the ESPN mobile Web, ScoreCenter and WatchESPN – logged an average minute audience of 95,831.  Specifically on ESPN.com, the Golf section logged an average of 890,000 daily unique visitors (up 22 percent) and an average of 9.3 million minutes per day (up 65 percent).  On mobile, the Golf section on the mobile Web averaged 7.6 million minutes per day during the championship (up 32 percent), while the Golf section on the ScoreCenter app averaged 413,000 daily unique visitors (up 107 percent) with an average of 2 million minutes per day (up 105 percent).  Additionally, The Open Championship on WatchESPN and ESPN3 generated 74.8 million total minutes throughout the event, up 21 percent compared to last year.

R.I.P. Jim Langley

Quite possibly the nicest man who ever lived. The longtime head professional at Cypress Point, former Marine, former Cal basketball player and great golfer passed away Saturday night the 19th and would have celebrated a birthday Sunday the 20th.

Joel Zuckerman recently interviewed Jim and posted this wonderful profile of the great man.

Update on 2013-07-23 06:58 by Geoff

**Jerry Stewart with more, including comments from Jack Nicklaus, on the passing of Jim Langley.